The present invention relates generally to product packaging and/or containers that include integrated dispensing devices. More specifically, the present invention relates to device that allows the user to introduce a metered dose of fluid in a controlled fashion into or onto the surface of a cleaning pad applicator prior to or during use.
Various types of fluid material and media are employed for different purposes throughout commerce and industry. For example, there are various products in the areas of personal care, home care, air care, transportation care and food industries that require a fluid material to be dispensed in some manner from a source of such material. Further, when this material is sold in commerce, it must be contained and stored in some type of container while awaiting use. Ultimately, when that product is used, it must be dispensed from its storage container to the desired location for use.
In the prior art, there are many different types of dispensers that are employed for the delivery of such a stored fluid material to its desired location for use. For example, a storage container having a flexible body with a nozzle tip extending therefrom is commonly provided for such a purpose. An example of such use can be seen in the context of a ketchup dispenser, where a user squeezes the container body to urge the fluid material (ketchup) out from container body and through the nozzle tip to accurately deposit the fluid material at the desired location. In such an application, the amount of fluid that is ultimately delivered is determined by the how much the user actually squeezes the container body. While this method has provided marginally acceptable results, this method also typically yields an erratic fluid volume since more or less fluid material may be delivered on each successive squeeze of the container body. Also, the container must be held upright to avoid leakage because no valves are employed in the fluid nozzle tip.
In another example of a prior art dispensing device, a flexible container is provided that holds a volume of fluid material to be delivered. In an attempt to overcome the leakage issue noted above, a single one-way check valve is provided at the exit port of the flexible container. When the flexible body is squeezed, the material is urged out under pressure through the valve. The difficulty here is that the valve, over time, becomes partially clogged thereby requiring that the user apply additional pressure to cause the valve to open. As a result, once the valve opens, the additional pressure causes more fluid material to be deposited than the user typically would have desired.
In addition to the controlled dispensing issue identified above, there is a desire in the art not only to simply dispense the fluid material but also to help apply them, such as to a surface. In the prior art, the solution to such an application was the provision of squeezable container bodies that are equipped with some type of applicator head for this purpose. For example, in the home care cleaning industry, there are many types of surface cleaners that include an integrated cleaning pad that is employed for contact with the surface to be cleaned. It is also common for the surface cleaning device to include an auxiliary supply of liquid cleaner therein for delivery directly to the surface to be cleaned. For home cleaning, such as for cleaning dishes and pots, a supply of liquid dish soap is commonly stored within a hollow handle of the scrubbing device so that when it is held upright during use, the fluid gradually exits from the exit port and into the cleaning pad to facilitate cleaning of the dishes. To provide some control over the flow of the dish soap, some of these prior art devices have included a simple one-way check valve on the bottom of the pad that can be depressed to release cleaning fluid therethrough.
However, rather than relying simply on gravity or capillary flow and the use of a single check valve to control the dispensing of the cleaning fluid, it is desirable to have the liquid cleaner be injected into the pad, onto the pad or be directed immediately under the porous surface of the pad in a metered dosed fashion. It is also desirable that the pad rotates during use to facilitate the cleaning effort.
Accordingly, there is a need for a fluid container that provides a selective dosing mechanism that is easy to operate. There is a further need for a device that can dispense fluid materials in a metered fashion where the dispersion of the fluid can be controlled. There is still a further need of a device that includes an internal reservoir for storing fluid therein while also including a means for dispensing the fluid into an applicator pad in a controlled and metered fashion in order to produce predictable flow and a better control of the fluid material application. Many of these needs are met by commonly owned, co-pending U.S. patent application Ser. No. 11/074,817, filed on Mar. 8, 2005 and U.S. patent application Ser. No. 11/951,351, filed on Dec. 6, 2007, which are incorporated herein by reference. There is still a further need that such a device includes a pad that rotates and an integrated means for delivering fluid to the pad in a metered fashion. In response to this need, this application sets forth a device for dispensing a fluid material from a reservoir in a metered fashion into an applicator that is attached to or surrounds the outer surface of the reservoir.